The Best Whisky Glass?

The best whisky glass? It’s a common question, and one which can elicit strong opinions! Never fear, we’re here to take you through the various types of whisky (or whiskey!) glasses and point you in the right direction.

Whisky tumblers

When we first started drinking whisky many moons ago, we were only aware of whisky tumblers as the so-called official glasses to use. I blame the movies and TV, with their scenes of various moguls and their whisky decanters, ice buckets and tumbler glasses, going through the ritual of pouring themselves a Scotch On The Rocks after a long hard day spent taking over the world.

And indeed, this is where the tumbler comes into its own. It is the perfect glass to use if you are having your whisky with ice, or if you are adding a mixer such as soda, ginger ale or coke. One of my favourite whiskey plus mixer combos is Jameson’s and ginger ale, always enjoyed with ice in a tumbler glass.

But it doesn’t only have to be used for that purpose. You can quite happily use tumblers if you are drinking your whisky neat or with a bit of water. We like to use our whisky tumblers specifically for drinking bourbon like this.

Tulip-shaped whisky glasses

Nowadays, we’ve graduated to using mostly tulip-shaped whisky glasses to drink our single malt whiskies. Our whisky glass of choice here is the classic Glencairn glass, known as the official whisky glass, though you do get others in this style (like the Copita nosing glass or the Schott Zwiesel crystal glass, for example). Although these various whisky glasses differ slightly in shape, the idea is the same – a slightly bulbous base, tapering in at the top.

The point of this shape is to concentrate the aroma of the whisky at your nose, enhancing the tasting experience. It does work, and out of the two types of whisky/whiskey glasses, the classic Glencairn glass is our absolute favourite. The tapered mouth makes it easy to drink from, the whisky smells glorious with each sip, and it feels good in the hand. It is the ideal way to enjoy a single malt whisky, and (dare I say it!) in my opinion it is the best whisky glass.